1. Field of the Invention
Embodiments of the invention relate to the field of microprocessors, and more specifically, to clock distribution.
2. Description of Related Art
As speed of high performance microprocessors becomes faster and faster, it is advantageous to have a reliable clock generation. Clock signals are typically routed to several circuit elements within the core of a processor. When the power state of the processor changes, the clock distribution network may undergo transitions from an inactive state to an active state, or vice versa. These transitions may cause large systematic power supply disturbances that may adversely impact sensitive or mixed-signal circuits on the processor.
Existing techniques addressing the problem of transitions of clock distribution have a number of disadvantages. One technique is to build special circuits to withstand the supply disturbances. This technique is costly, requiring additional silicon area. It may also not be flexible enough to handle a variety of disturbance phenomena.